The lazy renter's guide to Disney vacation home rentals.

Choosing the right rental home for your vacation is a daunting task. Googling "vacation rentals by Disney" comes up with endless results, mostly linking you to numerous listing sites with thousands upon thousands of choices.

How do you trim the fat, avoid renter nightmares, and book the rental of your dreams?

Simple.

Research thoroughly...so you don't pay dearly.

For example: My family and I traveled to Georgia and booked a rental that looked immaculate online, I mean the vacation rental looked gorgeous. When I arrived, the exterior looked extremely worn (even a different color) and there were cigarette butts all over the entrance. To top it off, the key was not where it was promised, so we were locked out with no communication to the owner for two hours. Once we walked towards the back, we noticed the pool was green. The baby items we needed were not there...talk about a nightmare!

How can guests and renters avoid this when booking a vacation home rental?

Research the following...

1. Vacation Rental Resort / Neighborhood Reputation

This is a big one. Is the resort a new development or older and run down? Does the HOA do a good job at taking care of it and what did previous travelers think of the common amenities, pool area, clubhouse, etc? You can google search the specific resort and tripadvisor and other sites will have reviews for the actual resort vs. reviews for a specific home. This should be the first step in choosing a vacation rental home.

Solterra Resort is a wonderful community with very new amenities and a brand new lazy river, so I chose to invest here and do business here, but I can't be biased...there are many vacation rental resorts that are just as good, if not better. Research the reputation first.

2. HomeAway / VRBO / AirBnB Reviews

Common sense says to check how many reviews and how many stars those reviews hold...but go a step further and read what previous guest have said. If there is a negative review, did the property manager or owner respond to it? What did they say?

If there are no reviews, it does not mean it is a bad home...it could just be a new listing. But beware, scammers target vacation home renters in all communities, including Solterra Resort and offer ghost listings that lure people in only to find out there is no real rental. That leads us to the next point...

3. Study Vacation Rental Listing Photos and Amenities

Warning The listing photos may be outdated. When you arrive the furniture may not even be the same and that could be a huge let down. What if you have kids and the villa owner advertises a new Playstation game console, but when you get there and call you find out the "last guest" broke it. Talk about false advertising...

Study the listing photos and amenities and ask questions, which leads to my next topic...

4. Ask Questions...Questions Questions Questions

If a potential guest asks me questions about Solterra Resort and my vacation home rental, I jump at the chance to help them out. You should expect a speedy, prompt, and helpful response.

Tip: If they respond slowly or do not take the time to answer your question personally and respond with a "template" or "cookie cutter" answer, do NOT book with them. This is indicative of how they will treat you when you actually arrive.

Take it a step further and interview them briefly, ask:

• Are there enough towels? Spare linens?

• Soap, shampoo, conditioner included?

• Toilet paper and paper towel supplied?

• Pool heat included or extra?

• Are there baby safety mechanisms in place by the pool and exits?

• Is this a licensed rental?

• How and when will I receive my deposit back?

• How far is my vacation rental home from Disney?

• Is this self-catering or can I expect prompt service?

• Late checkouts...will this be a problem?

5. WiFi !

What if you rely on fast internet and your vacation home rental experiences "WiFi outage" this is no good! Ask the owner to ensure you will have reliable internet access.

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